Auckland Weather 27/01/23 and Cyclone Gabrielle

Forums › Off topic › Auckland Weather 27/01/23 and Cyclone Gabrielle

1 | ... | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 62

11190 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

#3074424 10-May-2023 09:40

For the first time I recall, the American consulate issued a weather alert

Weather Alert: U.S. Consulate Auckland (May 9, 2023)

Location: Auckland, New Zealand

Event: Heavy rain and thunderstorms are affecting the Auckland region and are expected to continue into the evening hours, potentially until midnight. In addition to forecasts of rainfall up to 15 inches (40cm), conditions exist for gale force winds and even the slight possibility of a tornado.

Actions to Take

Monitor local media and social media account or website of New Zealand Civil Defence. Individuals in Auckland should also monitor Auckland Emergency Management’s website.
Seek secure shelter during the storm and avoid travel until the storm has dissipated.
Avoid going into flooded areas and be aware of the possibility for flash flooding and storm surges in low-lying areas.
Assistance:

U.S. Consulate General Auckland

kingdragonfly

11190 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

#3074428 10-May-2023 09:46

Eva888: Feel very upset about the unnecessary loss of a young life. In what universe do you lead a group of kids into caves when serious weather and flooding was forecast the night before. Poor family.

Reminded me of a school trip into the hills of Wellington when my kids were young. I refused to let them go and was practically bullied into allowing them by the teacher who was calling me overprotective and that there was no danger whatsoever and he guaranteed they would be safe. Kids were 10 and 11. Well the weather turned and rained, they were washed out and the stupid teacher made them hold hands and walk through a rushing river that had risen and was up to their chests. Mine both were soaked, crying and had hypothermia when they arrived thankfully alive.

I know this is obvious, but no one should enter a rushing river if the water is above their knees. Thigh-high is considered extreme.

quickymart

13924 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

#3074429 10-May-2023 09:47

Weather very patchy today, raining on and off, then sunny, then rain again. It's quite steady now but I don't think this is going to be a repeat of yesterday. Also the promised thunderstorms never turned up - not that I noticed, anyway.

Benoire

2798 posts

Uber Geek

#3074524 10-May-2023 12:14

johno1234:

Sorry to hear that. This is just terrible. I simply cannot imagine how mad and upset I would be in this situation.

There's something deeply wrong in Auckland's storm water management and therefore the entire city's management when less than a day's moderate to heavy rain cannot be shifted to the sea. It it maintenance of drains, pipes, culverts and streams? Or is it that the growth in impermeable surfaces without compensating storm water management? There has not been that much rain. Yesterday was heavy at times but not as if it was 24 hours solid heavy rain or anything like that. Beyond 10% AEP we move in to overland flow paths and assume a signifcant proportion of the built drainage network is now surcharged and flooded and therefore reduced capacity.

The entire system is built on the concept of a 10% AEP service level, i.e. the surface drainage system can cope with what was considered standard level events but there was always a 10% chance that a storm event could overwhelm the system. We now understandwhat was a 10% AEP volume from TP108 has now shifted and that the volumes are greater and than that the worse case storms can occur more often.

There has also been a chronic underfunding of SW in Auckland which has left many parts of hte network undersized and underdeveloped, e.g. my subdivision was built in the 1960s and the piped network is too small to cater for the storm intensities defined in TP108 let alone the changes in intensity due to climate change. We've also had a wet week so far and so the ground is saturated and not capable of taking more water. You also have to note that increased in fill housing is also increasing run off.. density of housing is required to avoid the cost of sprawl but infill is the worse way as it reduces land uses for other things such as stormwater management and control.

Handle9

11386 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3074569 10-May-2023 14:34

johno1234:

xpd:

Weve been flooded again, worst yet....... and just had the new floor finished last week :(

Gonna be hounding council, they've been told multiple times what causes it and they do NOTHING about it.

Sorry to hear that. This is just terrible. I simply cannot imagine how mad and upset I would be in this situation.

There's something deeply wrong in Auckland's storm water management and therefore the entire city's management when less than a day's moderate to heavy rain cannot be shifted to the sea. It it maintenance of drains, pipes, culverts and streams? Or is it that the growth in impermeable surfaces without compensating storm water management? There has not been that much rain. Yesterday was heavy at times but not as if it was 24 hours solid heavy rain or anything like that.

Perhaps reform of the management of water infrastructure is required.

tweake

2391 posts

Uber Geek

#3074576 10-May-2023 15:32

Benoire:

The entire system is built on the concept of a 10% AEP service level, i.e. the surface drainage system can cope with what was considered standard level events but there was always a 10% chance that a storm event could overwhelm the system. We now understandwhat was a 10% AEP volume from TP108 has now shifted and that the volumes are greater and than that the worse case storms can occur more often.

There has also been a chronic underfunding of SW in Auckland which has left many parts of hte network undersized and underdeveloped, e.g. my subdivision was built in the 1960s and the piped network is too small to cater for the storm intensities defined in TP108 let alone the changes in intensity due to climate change. We've also had a wet week so far and so the ground is saturated and not capable of taking more water. You also have to note that increased in fill housing is also increasing run off.. density of housing is required to avoid the cost of sprawl but infill is the worse way as it reduces land uses for other things such as stormwater management and control.

some of the footage on tv last night was telling. water coming up through the drainage says the system downstream is undersized.

that sort of rain is common most years, its flooded the exact same places as it always has around here, so why is this year suddenly different for auckland?

one of the issues around here has been councils not charging enough for services over the last 50 years so now they don't have the money for repairs and upgrades.

Benoire

2798 posts

Uber Geek

#3074577 10-May-2023 15:39

tweake:

some of the footage on tv last night was telling. water coming up through the drainage says the system downstream is undersized.

that sort of rain is common most years, its flooded the exact same places as it always has around here, so why is this year suddenly different for auckland?

one of the issues around here has been councils not charging enough for services over the last 50 years so now they don't have the money for repairs and upgrades.

Downstream catchments are now also at capacity. In reality the massive underfunding and sprawl based approach to housing has reduced the rates base for looking after the assets and infill density is now making it worse as the cost to upgrade pipes is huge... developers only pay for their local area with the rest being fronted by the ratepayer.

I work within Auckland Transports design advisory and assets space and I can say that it is simply chronic underfunding for years that has meant that once pipes are laid they very rarely get upgraded in local streets and low order roads and catchments are generally undersized... its why we have retention and detention within developments now to increase the time of concentration of rainfall from hitting the main outlets.

Equinox IT

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.

tweake

2391 posts

Uber Geek

#3074582 10-May-2023 16:00

Benoire:

tweake:

some of the footage on tv last night was telling. water coming up through the drainage says the system downstream is undersized.

that sort of rain is common most years, its flooded the exact same places as it always has around here, so why is this year suddenly different for auckland?

one of the issues around here has been councils not charging enough for services over the last 50 years so now they don't have the money for repairs and upgrades.

Downstream catchments are now also at capacity. In reality the massive underfunding and sprawl based approach to housing has reduced the rates base for looking after the assets and infill density is now making it worse as the cost to upgrade pipes is huge... developers only pay for their local area with the rest being fronted by the ratepayer.

I work within Auckland Transports design advisory and assets space and I can say that it is simply chronic underfunding for years that has meant that once pipes are laid they very rarely get upgraded in local streets and low order roads and catchments are generally undersized... its why we have retention and detention within developments now to increase the time of concentration of rainfall from hitting the main outlets.

i agree.

auckland rates are some of the cheapest around and still they complain like crazy. its the same old pattern, they don't want to spend anything on homes, but want to sell it for max profit tax free. let someone else pay the bill.

Handsomedan

7281 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Subscriber

#3074583 10-May-2023 16:06

tweake:

i agree.

auckland rates are some of the cheapest around and still they complain like crazy. its the same old pattern, they don't want to spend anything on homes, but want to sell it for max profit tax free. let someone else pay the bill.

Really? Are they?

We have a small home on a half section in a suburb that never used to flood, but often now does.

Our rates are $2.5k per annum, which is significantly more than they were pre-supercity when we used to receive far better services and we didn't have all of the infrastructure issues that we now seem to be experiencing, yet paying far more for.

I shudder to think what others are paying, if we are paying some of the cheapest rates around. Please enlighten me.

A quick google tells me this:

Rates: Auckland Council ranks highest for average residential rates at $3,656, with Carterton District Council a close second at $3,650.

Handsome Dan Has Spoken.
Handsome Dan needs to stop adding three dots to every sentence...

Handsome Dan does not currently have a side hustle as the mascot for Yale

*Gladly accepting donations...

johno1234

2793 posts

Uber Geek

#3074584 10-May-2023 16:10

Benoire:

tweake:

some of the footage on tv last night was telling. water coming up through the drainage says the system downstream is undersized.

that sort of rain is common most years, its flooded the exact same places as it always has around here, so why is this year suddenly different for auckland?

one of the issues around here has been councils not charging enough for services over the last 50 years so now they don't have the money for repairs and upgrades.

Downstream catchments are now also at capacity. In reality the massive underfunding and sprawl based approach to housing has reduced the rates base for looking after the assets and infill density is now making it worse as the cost to upgrade pipes is huge... developers only pay for their local area with the rest being fronted by the ratepayer.

I work within Auckland Transports design advisory and assets space and I can say that it is simply chronic underfunding for years that has meant that once pipes are laid they very rarely get upgraded in local streets and low order roads and catchments are generally undersized... its why we have retention and detention within developments now to increase the time of concentration of rainfall from hitting the main outlets.

That makes sense. Also, where the pipes might even be sufficient on paper, if they and the sumps and surge chambers are full of silt they won't cope.

Behodar

10501 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3074585 10-May-2023 16:14

Handsomedan:

We have a small home on a half section in a suburb that never used to flood, but often now does.

Our rates are $2.5k per annum, which is significantly more than they were pre-supercity when we used to receive far better services and we didn't have all of the infrastructure issues that we now seem to be experiencing, yet paying far more for.

I shudder to think what others are paying, if we are paying some of the cheapest rates around. Please enlighten me.

I'm in Whakatane and my district council rates are $3400 (plus $380 to the regional council). My house is probably more-or-less "average" in terms of size/section size.

elpenguino

3419 posts

Uber Geek

#3074586 10-May-2023 16:17

Handsomedan:

Our rates are $2.5k per annum, which is significantly more than they were pre-supercity when we used to receive far better services and we didn't have all of the infrastructure issues that we now seem to be experiencing, yet paying far more for.

Come to Wellington and pay > $4k for an average house in an average suburb.

Of course it never floods here ..... but that's probably because we're at ~100 mtrs elevation.

Most of the posters in this thread are just like chimpanzees on MDMA, full of feelings of bonhomie, joy, and optimism. Fred99 8/4/21

tweake

2391 posts

Uber Geek

#3074590 10-May-2023 16:25

Handsomedan:

tweake:

i agree.

auckland rates are some of the cheapest around and still they complain like crazy. its the same old pattern, they don't want to spend anything on homes, but want to sell it for max profit tax free. let someone else pay the bill.

Really? Are they?

We have a small home on a half section in a suburb that never used to flood, but often now does.

Our rates are $2.5k per annum, which is significantly more than they were pre-supercity when we used to receive far better services and we didn't have all of the infrastructure issues that we now seem to be experiencing, yet paying far more for.

I shudder to think what others are paying, if we are paying some of the cheapest rates around. Please enlighten me.

A quick google tells me this:

Rates: Auckland Council ranks highest for average residential rates at $3,656, with Carterton District Council a close second at $3,650.

i have a bottom end cheap house just out of auck, rates 3k. mates place across the border in auck is high end large house, plus small airbnb, on 10 acres (worth around 2 million, sold it a few years back) is 3k rates. plus i pay water separately.

Benoire

2798 posts

Uber Geek

#3074591 10-May-2023 16:26

johno1234:

That makes sense. Also, where the pipes might even be sufficient on paper, if they and the sumps and surge chambers are full of silt they won't cope.

The true costs of maintaining our ~7600km of road network are absolutely huge and its no where near funded at the levels to maintain a decent level of service, let alone the water network within the region... Essentially to keep rates low and seem votable, our politicians refuse to look after what we have while the RMA, IHP and commisioners approve new subdivisions and infil housing against Councils funded ability.

johno1234

2793 posts

Uber Geek

#3074592 10-May-2023 16:27

elpenguino:

Handsomedan:

Our rates are $2.5k per annum, which is significantly more than they were pre-supercity when we used to receive far better services and we didn't have all of the infrastructure issues that we now seem to be experiencing, yet paying far more for.

Come to Wellington and pay > $4k for an average house in an average suburb.

Of course it never floods here ..... but that's probably because we're at ~100 mtrs elevation.

They're not the best at transporting away the poos and wees but.

1 | ... | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 62